Ron Carter’s trio with guitarist Russell Malone has turned into one of the most impressive small groups since its beginnings 20 years ago. Pianist Donald Vega’s replacement of the late Mulgrew Miller didn’t even drop a stitch, as the team…
Category: Concert Reviews
Cal Arts Jazz Faculty All Stars@The Blue Whale 11.19.16
The state of jazz education was shown to be in excellent hands at the Blue Whale Saturday night, as faculty members David Roitstein/p, Larry Koonse/g, Joe La Barbera/dr and Jonathan Richards/b presented a timeless workshop of swinging modern sounds. Larry…
Diego El Cigala@The Luckman 11.18.16
The gypsy spirit of Diego El Cigala has lead him to discover and interpret musical latin lovers ranging from tango, flamenco, Andalusian and Cuban. This time around, the Grammy winning soul brought the salsa music from his latest album Indestructible…
John Mayall@ Canyon Club 11.17.16
American music at her deepest roots were cultivated at the Canyon Club a week before Thanksgiving. Mark MacKay opened the evening with a rich quilt of acoustic guitars and bass supporting his homespun voice through a collection of covers and…
John Pisano’s Guitar Night@Viva Cantina 11.15.16
As guitar legend John Pisano joked, “Django Reinhardt would not have worked in a Mexican restaurant!” But what does it matter in Los Angeles, as Pisano brought a band together that delivered a fitting tribute to the famous Belgian artist,…
Rez Abbasi & Junction@The Blue Whale 10.29.16
The Pakistan bred and East Coast fed guitarist Rez Abbasi may have been jesting when he stated at the beginning of the 70 minute set “We’re going to play a lot of Rush tonight”, but the energy emitted by the…
Joey Alexander@The Broad Stage 10.15.16
“Let no one despise your yor, but be an example to the believers in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity” St. Paul to Timothy 4:12 When a 13 year old becomes the poster child for…
Wynton Marsalis with JALCO and the CSUN “A” Band@Valley Performing Arts Center 10.08.16
The past, present and future of jazz was delivered at the VPAC Gala Event Saturday night. In opposition to today’s political scene, conductor and director Matt Harris pointed to positive days ahead as he lead the CSUN “A” Band through…
Tony DeSare@Pepperdine Smothers Theatre 10.07.16
I’m not going to publicly degrade any artist, but after watching a solo concert by Tony DeSare, I have to ask you in all honesty, why are people (and maybe even YOU) listening to that guy who’s last name rhymes…
Brad Mehldau & Joshua Redman (or was it Joshua Redman & Brad Mehldau)@ The Broad Stage 10.02.16
Now household worlds in the jazz scene, pianist Brad Mehldau and saxist Josh Redman have played with each other in a variety of concert and studio settings over the years. This reunion of sorts, documented on their luminous album Nearness,…